University retention and completion rates underestimate true levels of student participation because of their reliance on measurements taken at commencement (or census date) and end of a program.As a result, these statistical snapshots miss what happens in between, failing to capture the true reach of the teaching and learning process, as well as the effort and DVI-I Connecting Cable resources involved.This is problematic when these numbers drive debate over higher education policy or institutional decisions over resource allocation.Here we propose a way of turning retention statistics into a more meaningful measurement of student participation, that we term engagement.In the context of this article, engagement is Arthritis a calculated quantity based on the time-averaged student retention of a program or course.
We argue that it addresses the shortcomings of snapshot metrics and provides some much-needed insight into student participation.We motivate its adoption and illustrate its use with worked examples, as a guide to practitioners, researchers and policymakers in the field.